Gender Project Consultant

Background

UN Women, grounded in the vision of equality enshrined in the Charter of the United Nations, works for the elimination of discrimination against women and girls; the empowerment of women; and the achievement of equality between women and men as partners and beneficiaries of development, human rights, humanitarian action and peace and security. Placing women’s rights at the center of all its efforts, UN Women leads and coordinates United Nations system efforts to ensure that commitments on gender equality and gender mainstreaming translate into action throughout the world. It provides strong and coherent leadership in support of Member States’ priorities and efforts, building effective partnerships with civil society and other relevant actors.

UN Women Japan Liaison Office has been established in Bunkyo-Ku, Tokyo, Japan since April 2015. The Office works on strengthening UN Women’s partnerships in Japan and raising awareness about UN Women’s work, for example through lectures and public events. In particular, it is expected reach out to various actors, including the government, parliaments, private enterprises, academics, NGOs, media and other and to keep them informed about UN Women’s work and role with regards to gender equality and women’s empowerment. Against this backdrop, UN Women Japan Liaison Office in 2017 launched the gender project “Raising awareness of gender equality (“GE”) among the youth in Japan”, and continues to actively work on the gender project formulation and development together with potential donors and partners for resource mobilization.

In this scope, the Project Assistant, will assist the Gender Project Manager in designing, implementing and managing the gender project activities. She/he is also expected to conduct research and analysis in support of gender project development for the resource mobilization.  The Project Assistant will also work in close collaboration with the Programme Assistant in the area of gender project finance and procurement and communication team in the area of advocacy and outreach, as needed.  

Through her/his functions, the Project Assistant will contribute to the overall synergy of the team, and subsequently enhance the productivity of the Japan Liaison Office. 

Duties and Responsibilities

Under the supervision of the Gender Project Manager, the main responsibilities of the Consultant will be to:

Provide administrative and operational supports to the Gender Project Manager (PM) in the project implementation and management

• Assist the PM in organizing and preparation of travels/meetings/events/workshops;
• Assist the PM in managing the workplan, timeline and budget/expenditure of the project activities;
• Assist the PM in monitoring indicators and evaluation of the outcomes of the project activities;
• Compile data and project materials for filing and analysis to ensure effective monitoring and evaluation of the project; 
• Attend project related meetings/events/workshops, and prepare minutes, memos, or reports to document such activities;
• Coordinate day-to-day activities with the Operations assistant, HQ RM Business Center, Finances and Procurement in the area of project related activities including finance and procurement;  
• Liaise with contractors (implementation partners) and external stakeholders of the project to ensure smooth implementation of the project.

Carry out research and analysis contributing to the gender project(s) development, resource mobilization and partnerships building

• Assist the PM in developing concept notes by providing quality information and research; 
• Map out potential stakeholders in accordance to thematic agenda for the PM to conduct strategic review and analysis in exploring potential areas of new project and funding opportunities.

Coordinate day-to-day operations to ensure effective visibility management

• Serve as a contact point for contractors (implementation partners) and external stakeholders involving communications and advocacy component of the project (i.e. video production, website creator, printing company etc).

Any other duty assigned by the Director of the UN Women Japan Liaison Office and the PM

Key Performance Indicators:

• Quality and timely support to the PM in gender project management and implementation;
• Timely delivery of quality information and intelligence for project formulation and development;
• Full compliance with UN Women policies, procedures, and guidance; 
• Relations with project implementing partners. 

Competencies

Core Values / Guiding Principles:

• Demonstrating consistency in upholding and promoting the values of UN Women in actions and decisions, in line with the UN Code of Conduct;
• Demonstrating an appreciation of the multicultural nature of the organization and the diversity of its staff;
• Demonstrating an international outlook, appreciating differences in values and learning from cultural diversity;

• Demonstrate consistency in upholding and promoting the values of UN Women in actions and decisions, in line with the UN Code of Conduct;
• Demonstrate professional competence and expert knowledge of the pertinent substantive areas of work.

Core Competencies:

• Awareness and Sensitivity Regarding Gender Issues;
• Accountability;
• Creative Problem Solving
• Inclusive Collaboration;
• Stakeholder Engagement;
• Leading by Example;

• Demonstrate and promote ethics and integrity by creating organizational precedents;
• Build support for the organization and ensure political acumen;
• Support staff competence development, and contribute to an environment of creativity and innovation;
• Build and promote effective teams;
• Demonstrate ability to work in a multicultural, multi-ethnic environment and to maintain effective working relations with people of different national and cultural backgrounds;

• Create and promote an environment for open and effective communication;
• Stay composed and positive even in difficult moments, handle tense situations with diplomacy and tact, and have a consistent behavior towards others;
• Surface conflicts and address them proactively acknowledging different feelings and views and directing energy towards a mutually acceptable solution;
• Share knowledge across the organization and build a culture of knowledge sharing and learning;
• Ensure fair and transparent decision-making processes and manage risk.

Functional Competencies:

• Project management skills and ability to handle a large volume of work are essential;
• Strong knowledge of finance and procurement would be an asset;
• Knowledge of monitoring and evaluation; 
• Ability to extract and interpret data and assemble quality information for strategic thinking;
• Strong interpersonal skills;          
• Excellent organizational skills and sound judgement.

Required Skills and Experience

Education:

• Completion of secondary education required;
• University degree in International Relations, Business or Public Administration is desirable.

Experience:

• At least 3 years of progressively experience in project management/support;
• Experience in the use of computers applications and software package (MS Word, Excel) and web based management systems.
• Working experience in public institutions is desirable.

Language:   

• Fluency in written and spoken English and Japanese.